activity increased in the downtown area . between 1890 and 1930 , meridian was the largest city in mississippi and a leading center for manufacturing in the south . many of the city ' s historic buildings were built during and just after this era , including the grand opera house in 1890 , the we ##chs ##ler school in 1894 , two carnegie libraries in 1913 , and the three ##foot building , meridian ' s tallest skyscraper , in 1929 . the city continued to grow thanks to a commission government ' s efforts to bring in 90 new industrial plants in 1913 and a booming automobile industry in the 1920s . even through the stock market crash of 1929 and the following great depression ,
activity increased in the downtown area. between 1890 and 1930, meridian was the largest city in mississippi and a leading center for manufacturing in the south. many of the city's historic buildings were built during and just after this era, including the grand opera house in 1890, the wechsler school in 1894, two carnegie libraries in 1913, and the threefoot building, meridian's tallest skyscraper, in 1929. the city continued to grow thanks to a commission government's efforts to bring in 90 new industrial plants in 1913 and a booming automobile industry in the 1920s. even through the stock market crash of 1929 and the following great depression,